Seven Seas Mariner, Venice to Monte Carlo

I would like to be one to praise Seven Seas Regent on the service and effort that they provided on our cruise from Venice to Monte Carlo departing on August 27, 2012.

It seems that so many posts that I read are focused on the negative. If you have never sailed on Regent I urge you to keep an open mind. My husband and I were very impressed with the service, and dining on our recent cruise.

We booked a Mariner suite with a butler. Our butler Reynaldo was just wonderful. He was a true professional in every way. We found that all personnel on board, from cleaning staff to Cruise Director were well trained, and pleasant. When we encountered them, they stopped what ever they were doing to look us in the eye, smile and say good-morning or good-afternoon in an honest way.

Dining in all of the restaurants on board was a pleasure. We like to have a table for two and never found that to be a problem at any time of the evening. Compass Rose served a variety of tasty More
menu's that were beautifully and artfully composed. The wait staff was attentive and professional, and not stuffy.

The two specialty restaurants, Prime 7 and Signatures were both beautifully appointed. We spoke to many of the other passengers, and everyone seemed to have a different opinion on which was their favorite. We liked Signatures better, but in both of them we had an enjoyable meal. We enjoyed the level of service, the no-tipping policy, and all inclusive policy which included complementary wine with meals.

We will gladly re-book with this cruise line, and find that it has spoiled us in comparison to the other ships that we have sailed on.The ports of call were varied. This sailing took us to a new port every day. Our first stop was Ancona, Italy. As I understand, this was a relatively new port of call for Regent. I would rate this as our least favorite port. Some of our tours were excellent and some just adequate. However, but that can happen on any cruise line since the tours are not run by the cruise line. I think if one try's there is always something good to find about every tour. We choose to not dwell on the negatives.

Entertainment on this ship was good. You will not find major productions as may be found on the mega ships, but we were entertained and because of the lower number of passengers the theatre has a more intimate feel.

As stated above, we are looking forward to the time when we can sail again with Regent. Less

Cabin review: MN8104

We loved our Mariner Suite #8104. It was situated aft of the ship with a spacious 200 sq. feet of out side deck. There is a separate sleeping area that can be separated by curtains. The bedroom has a flat screen TV. and a make up vanity. The walk in closet was spacious and had many more hangers then we needed. It also has a wall safe. The living room has a sofa and easy chair. A wall contains built in cabinets with glass doors and houses the large flat screen TV. There is also a separate desk and chair. The bath room in this suite has a marble shower, no tub and more than adequate space. The amenities were Hermes, and L'Occitane which were replenished as used.

Port and Shore Excursions

Achilleion Palace

As mentioned above the Achilleion Palace tour was a great experience if one enjoys looking at antiquities, and learning history. The city tour was not extensive. However, we did enjoy the free time that we had shopping in the city. The shops were varied, and the shop keepers were friendly.

City Tour

Dalmation Coastal Villages

Dubrovnik is fascinating. However, due to the time of year the walled city was packed with people making it difficult to move around. I would suggest that fall would be a better time to visit this area. There would perhaps be less people.

Vatican Museums

We paid extra to have a private tour guide. The group was small with about 10 people. Our guide was a walking historian. This is a tour one could take 25 times and not see everything. I think that we had a great overview. It was well organized and well conducted.

City Tour

This tour took us to the little hilltop town of Savoca. This was the town featured in The Godfather movies. Our guide was well versed in its history. We enjoyed the town, and the bus drive through the Town of Taromina as well.